CONFOCAL MICROSCOPE

One or two-photon – many available variants

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Confocal laser scanning microscopes were the first to come along. These extremely versatile (and therefore indispensable) tools equip each light microscopy facility in the TRI network. They capture the fluorescent signal only from the focal plane by getting rid of the stray fluorescence from the upper and lower planes. The point-by-point laser illumination provides great flexibility in acquisition, including the ability to zoom in on the image until it reaches the limit of optical resolution (several dozen nanometers). However, this high-resolution ability implies a certain slowness, which can be overcome by confocal resonant scanning systems, more sensitive sensors or spinning disk-confocal systems.

Laser scanning microscopes can be seperated into two groups: one- and two-photon microscopes. The latter can penetrate deeper into matter and achieve a better resolution.